The Polyester Podcast

This week we've partnered with the Fitzwilliam Museum to take on the internet's renewed interest in all things literary. Inspired by the museum's rehang, where one portion of the Interiors gallery depicts women reading throughout the years, Ione and Gina talk through the oxymoronic literary it girl trend, the insidious nature of BookTok and the historical triumphs involved in female literacy. Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!A statement by journalists: We condemn Israel's killing of journalists in Gaza and urge integrity in Western media coverage of Israel's atrocities against Palestinians.Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram.

The past two weeks have seen a new debate arise in the world of online activism - what is the place of AI in conversations around raising awareness of important political issues? In this episode, Ione and Gina ask whether all is fair in getting All Eyes On Rafah or if we need to be cautious of the intentions behind those creating viral images to be shared across social media.Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!A statement by journalists: We condemn Israel's killing of journalists in Gaza and urge integrity in Western media coverage of Israel's atrocities against Palestinians.Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram.

Is it five signs you may have ADHD or is it five vague symptoms that could be applicable to anyone? In this week's episode, Ione and Gina are diving into the way that TikTok - and the internet in general - has made being neurodivergent a personality trait, a subculture and a community in and of itself. The pair look at the pros and cons of sharing information on having a condition, how this affects wider society and whether or not we should be worrying about the uptick in social media users centring their lives around being neurospicy.Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!A statement by journalists: We condemn Israel's killing of journalists in Gaza and urge integrity in Western media coverage of Israel's atrocities against Palestinians.Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram

Following the luxury of the Met Gala - and one influencer's mistimed 'Let Them Eat Cake" lip synch - the internet is demanding action from the celebrity class in response to the ongoing genocide in Palestine. The #BlockOut2024 encourages social media users to block celebrities and cut short their income streams until they voice their opinion on the conflict - but is this a useful form of activism or just virtue signalling from people hoping to win the game of social media? This week Ione and Gina are getting into the pros and cons of digital activism, celeb altruism and the internet's dilution of what it means to be politically active.Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!A statement by journalists: We condemn Israel's killing of journalists in Gaza and urge integrity in Western media coverage of Israel's atrocities against Palestinians.Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram

Recently, Twitter was set ablaze by another creepy move by the incel community: AI generated women to have sex with while pumping into a boxed fleshlight. The viral video, which promises to put an end to declining birth rates, has sparked debates on the morality of combining intimacy with AI; and in this week's episode, Ione and Gina are getting into the root of it all. Is it gamification? Is it fetish content? And what does gene warfare even mean?Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!A statement by journalists: We condemn Israel's killing of journalists in Gaza and urge integrity in Western media coverage of Israel's atrocities against Palestinians.Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram

It's been less than three weeks since Netflix dropped the true crime, true story drama Baby Reindeer and the discourse surrounding the show feels inescapable. As internet sleuths take it upon themselves to wreak vigilante justice on the real life people the series was based on, those who know Richard Gadd - the writer and star of Baby Reindeer - suffer the consequences. Is it a failure in safeguarding or a marketing ploy? Is this the final form of parasocial relationships? In this week's episode Ione and Gina are picking apart how social media's obsession with true crime has truly killed any kind of empathy and nuance we have for one another.Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!A statement by journalists: We condemn Israel's killing of journalists in Gaza and urge integrity in Western media coverage of Israel's atrocities against Palestinians.Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram

The second weekend of Coachella has confirmed it: Chappell Roan is the lesbian pop star the world has been waiting for. Roan is one of a generation of pop girlies paving the way for sapphic representation in the mainstream - from Jojo Siwa to Renee Rap, we are truly in a queer woman power hour for music. In this week's episode, Ione and Gina break down what is so appealing about Roan's output, whether queer visibility is a good thing and why the culture has been longing for explicitly lesbian lyricism. Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!A statement by journalists: We condemn Israel's killing of journalists in Gaza and urge integrity in Western media coverage of Israel's atrocities against Palestinians.Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram

By tracking our blood glucose levels, harvesting our eggs and banking our collagen are we hacking the health system or are we contributing to the privatisation of NHS services and discrimination of chronically ill and disabled people? Who actually benefits from us following the inner workings of our bodies online? Will the horrors ever end? In this week's episode Ione and Gina are tacking our current obsession with making health a lifestyle choice. Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!A statement by journalists: We condemn Israel's killing of journalists in Gaza and urge integrity in Western media coverage of Israel's atrocities against Palestinians.Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram